Stuck Impaction, please help!

[-Clementine-]

Yesterday, I noticed that my bantam cochin rooster Sage had a huge crop. Liquid went all the way up to the top of his crop, and it felt like there was a tennis ball stuck in it. I have read @TwoCrows 's and @azygous 's crop treatment articles and dealt with doughy/impacted crops before, so I didn't really think much into it. After a day of no food and water, all of the excess food and liquid had drained out of his crop. Today, I took him out of his quarantine cage to check on his crop, and I noticed there was a lump, a tad smaller than a golf ball, still hanging out in his crop. After massaging it for a little bit, I figured out it was made of hay. After water and more massaging, it refused to break apart, and it is way to big to pass out of his small bantam crop.

I'm concerned that the only way to get it out is crop surgery. I do not possess the skills or willpower to cut a hole in my precious chicken, let alone actually manage to do post surgery intensive care to heal the hole. I have not researched vets that do avian care, but I'm pretty sure that if the closest vet that does rabbit care is two hours away, then I'm going to be out of luck with poultry vets, and my parents probably won't want to pay the vet fees either. Also, what should I feed him that won't make the impaction worse if this is going to take more than a few days?

Is it a possibility that the answer isn't as drastic as surgery? If anyone has any suggestions, or has dealt with this before, I would appreciate it very much.

 

[azygous]

You are wrong. You are entirely capable of doing crop surgery. How do i know this? Because I can see how much you care about this little fellow. And I'm sure you could talk one of your parents into being your surgical assistant.

But there are a couple of things to try first. Give him a dish of grit and water to consume when he wishes. You are also going to be stuffing some oil into him to try to soften the mass.

Here are the supplies you'll need for the things we're going to try before we gear up for surgery.
Molasses
Epsom salts
Coconut oil
stool softener (Dulculax)

Measure out two teaspoons of coconut oil. Divide it up into pea size pieces and chill in the fridge. When it's firm, put half of it into his beak one tiny piece at a time. When you get a teaspoon in, massage his crop focusing on the center of the mass. Try to concentrate on breaking it up with your finger tips.

Spend ten to fifteen minutes with this massage. He should relax and enjoy it. Give him the rest of the oil as you did the first half, and this time pop the stool softener capsule into his beak. Let him rest for half and hour and do some more massage concentrating on the center mass and try to get it to separate.

Hopefully, that will empty the crop. Leave him with plenty of water and grit and those things will help break up the mass further as it travels down the digestive tract.

Give him boiled egg to eat or yogurt. Tomorrow, check his crop in the morning before her eats or drinks and report the condition here on your thread. Depending on how well the crop emptied, we will probably give him a molasses flush to flush the rest of the material on through his intestines. Mix one teaspoon of molasses in one-fourth cup warm water and let him drink it all. Take his other water away until he drinks it.

Then you'll be monitoring his poop for all that grass. If none of this works, you will be performing crop surgery. I will give you all the instructions, step by step, and it will be like baking a cake.

 

[azygous]

Good work! Give us a report on the crop in the morning before food and water are given. We'll know from that where the next step will be.

 

[-Clementine-]

It may be time for crop surgery. Grass often will not pass out of an impacted crop due to it being such a stringy mass. There's a reason grass makes such great baskets and even fabric - it's indestructible.

Are you willing to consider the surgery? You can think about it and do it tomorrow. You will need time to prepare and gather the supplies, and conscript your surgical assistant. I will have a video for you to watch, as well.

I will think about it, thank you. I will try the molasses flush as well to see if that helps

 

[azygous]

Supplies to assemble:

A helper
Vetericyn wound spray
Betadine or alcohol
Saline wound flush
Sharp, sterilized cutting tool such as a one-sided razor blade or Xacto knife.
Sterile gauze
Tube of super glue
Latex gloves
Bath towel
Scissors to cut away feathers from incision site
Long tweezers or slender ice tongs to help pull out impacted material

Surgery:
-Wrap hen securely in a bath towel confining wings and feet, but leaving the crop exposed. No anesthesia is required. No pain meds.
-Have your helper hold the hen on her back on a hard surface or table.
-Locate the spot where the lump is most concentrated.
-Trim her feathers away so just skin is exposed.
-Prep the site with Betadine or alcohol to remove external bacteria.

Make a one inch incision in the skin. Do not cut any deeper than the outer layer. This will expose the crop sack.

Next, cut a one-inch opening into the crop sack, slightly offset to the outer cut. This is very important. You should be able to see the obstruction, grass or maybe something else that shouldn't be in there.

Putting slight pressure on the crop, push the obstruction toward the opening and pull it out. Continue until you can't get anything else out of it.

Irrigate the inside of the crop with a generous amount of saline until the saline comes out clean.

Dry the incisions by patting with sterile gauze. First apply super glue to the edges of the inner incision. Hold the tissue together until it bonds, about one minute. If it doesn't hold, apply more glue and continue to hold it until it bonds.

Glue the outer incision as you just did the inner one. Spray the incision liberally with Vetericyn. This promotes the tissue to grow together and heal. Do this twice a day for the next two days.

Feed only soft food such as yogurt, soft boiled egg, apple sauce, or gruel made from mixing water into her feed until it's soupy for the week following surgery. Give her a dose of Nutri-drench each day for five days.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

@azygous is Da Bomb.
Good luck with the surgery. Please keep us posted. We are rootin' for you and your chicken!

 

[-Clementine-]

You are wrong. You are entirely capable of doing crop surgery. How do i know this? Because I can see how much you care about this little fellow. And I'm sure you could talk one of your parents into being your surgical assistant.

But there are a couple of things to try first. Give him a dish of grit and water to consume when he wishes. You are also going to be stuffing some oil into him to try to soften the mass.

Here are the supplies you'll need for the things we're going to try before we gear up for surgery.
Molasses
Epsom salts
Coconut oil
stool softener (Dulculax)

Measure out two teaspoons of coconut oil. Divide it up into pea size pieces and chill in the fridge. When it's firm, put half of it into his beak one tiny piece at a time. When you get a teaspoon in, massage his crop focusing on the center of the mass. Try to concentrate on breaking it up with your finger tips.

Spend ten to fifteen minutes with this massage. He should relax and enjoy it. Give him the rest of the oil as you did the first half, and this time pop the stool softener capsule into his beak. Let him rest for half and hour and do some more massage concentrating on the center mass and try to get it to separate.

Hopefully, that will empty the crop. Leave him with plenty of water and grit and those things will help break up the mass further as it travels down the digestive tract.

Give him boiled egg to eat or yogurt. Tomorrow, check his crop in the morning before her eats or drinks and report the condition here on your thread. Depending on how well the crop emptied, we will probably give him a molasses flush to flush the rest of the material on through his intestines. Mix one teaspoon of molasses in one-fourth cup warm water and let him drink it all. Take his other water away until he drinks it.

Then you'll be monitoring his poop for all that grass. If none of this works, you will be performing crop surgery. I will give you all the instructions, step by step, and it will be like baking a cake.

Thank you for the response, I will try this

 

[EmmaRainboe]

I have not researched vets that do avian care, but I'm pretty sure that if the closest vet that does rabbit care is two hours away, then I'm going to be out of luck with poultry vets,

I have no advice to give, I would listen to whatever @azygous says.

I understand vet bills are expensive.

Just wanted to let you know if you are ever in need of a poultry vet- whether it be now or some other time. I’m not sure where exactly in Kitsap County you are, but There is a vet on Bainbridge Island who treats chickens.

 

[-Clementine-]

Sage's crop is not doing any better. I have decided to go ahead and do the surgery. What are the supplies needed?

 

[azygous]